SLAG EFFICACY AS A LIME AND SILICON SOURCE FOR RICE CROPS THROUGH THE BIOLOGICAL METHOD

There is little information about the best silicon (Si) sources for agricultural use, and yet some products have already been marketed as sources of this element. One of these products is slag, which is used as a source for Si and lime. This study evaluated the silicon supply availability and efficacy of different silicate slag types for rice crops. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse, used Entisol Quatzipsamment soil and was set up in randomized blocks with three replications. Si source reactivity was evaluated using five metallurgic slag types and Wollastonite, which is considered a standard in Si studies. Doses of each Si source were 1000 and 2000 mg dm^?3 of Si and a control (additional treatment). Soil data [soluble Si, calcium (Ca²⁺), magnesium (Mg²⁺) and pH] and rice growth and yield were recorded. Data were evaluated by analysis of variance and contrasts were made for comparisons between each slag type and the additional treatment. Averages were compared by the Scott Knott test at 5% with the statistics program SISVAR. The efficacy of the slag types in supplying Si for the plants (ESSi) and in increasing Si availability in the soil (ESiA) was determined from the values of contrast estimates. Slag E3 and Wollastonite were effective in increasing soil silicon availability and, consequently, the efficacy of supplying silicon for the plants, while the other slag types had low efficacy.     

Identification of new, odor-active thiocarbamates in cress extracts and structure-activity studies on synthesized homologues

New, odorant nitrogen- and sulfur-containing compounds are identified in cress extracts. Cress belongs to the botanical order Brassicales and produces glucosinolates, which are important precursors of nitrogen- and sulfur-containing compounds. Those compounds often present low perception thresholds and various olfactive notes and are thus of interest to the flavor and fragrance chemistry. When the study of organonitrogen and organosulfur compounds is undertaken, Brassicale extracts are one of the matrices of choice. Cress extracts were studied by analytical (GC-MS, GC-FPD) and chemical (fractionation) means to identify new interesting odorant compounds. Two compounds that have never been reported in cress extracts, containing both nitrogen and sulfur, were discovered: N-benzyl O-ethyl thiocarbamate and N-phenethyl O-ethyl thiocarbamate. These two molecules being of organoleptic interest, their homologues were synthesized and submitted to organoleptic tests (static and GC-sniffing). Their odors evolve from garlic and onion over green, mushroom- and cress-like to fresh, spearmint-like. This paper presents the origin, chemical synthesis, and organoleptic properties of a series of O-alkyl thiocarbamates.     

Evaluation of partial root-zone drying for potential field use as a deficit irrigation technique in commercial vineyards according to two different pipeline layouts

The use of partial root-drying (PRD) irrigation implies doubling pipelines instead of using a conventional single pipeline. However, pipelines can be spaced a short distance apart (e.g. 1 m) along the vine row (“D” layout) or joined with cable ties and laid as a single pipeline (“S” layout). Pipelines in “S” configuration are laid under the vine row, and in “D” at both sides of the vine row. These two different layouts can change the wetted soil zone and affect grapevine response to irrigation. The focus of this study was therefore on establishing the role of pipeline layout in vine-grape (cv. ‘Tempranillo’) response under semi-arid conditions in which PRD is managed as a deficit irrigation technique. Six irrigation treatments were applied, which resulted from the combination of Control (C, full irrigation), PRD and seasonal sustained deficit irrigation (SSDI), and “S” and “D” pipeline layouts. SSDI and PRD were irrigated to 50% C throughout the irrigation season, and C irrigation was scheduled according to a crop water balance technique. Midday stem water potential (Ψ_stem) and leaf conductance (g_l) indicated that, on the whole, PRD treatments had a slightly higher water status than SSDI treatments, but a substantially lower status than C treatments. Use of the “D” pipeline layout significantly reduced Ψ_stem in both PRD and SSDI treatments and in some instances for Control conditions, too. Berry yield, vine intercepted radiation, leaf abscisic acid (ABA) and g_l were highly correlated with Ψ_stem. Differences in water status between PRD-S and SSDI-S, according to a sub-surface irrigation test, seemed to be more related to changes in soil evaporation losses and irrigation efficiency than to any intrinsic PRD effect. PRD-S accounted for water savings equivalent to 10% according to the ratio between applied water and grape production for the SSDI-S treatment, whereas PRD-D berry yield was not significantly different from that associated with the SSDI-S treatment. In conclusion, under the growing conditions of this experiment, PRD-S offered the possibility of slightly improving water conservation when irrigation was applied to the soil surface.     

Use of a 6-steps microcosm for studying a wastewater discharge in a freshwater ecosystem: a multidisciplinary study

An experimental microcosm has been designed for simulating and studying impacts of a wastewater treatment plant (WTP) discharge on a freshwater/sediment ecosystem. The study was focused on the changes in biodiversity of benthic populations, especially bacteria and oligochaetes. Effluents were discharged in the Saône river, near Lyon (France) from a small treatment plant which treated domestic raw water by an activated sludge process. Freshwater and sediments were sampled in the Saône river upstream of the discharge point and placed in microcosms. Following the WTP discharge, physicochemical parameters of the overlying water column and sediments exhibited only a slight change, as compared to a reference. Characterization of the sediment bacterial populations was conducted with the Biolog and API systems. Strain identification and interpretation of data was difficult using thesetwo systems. Bacterial taxa in the sediments increased slightly below the WTP discharge. Gram negative strains dominated in the effluents, but G+ and G- bacteria were balanced in the sediments. Pseudomonas sp. and Bacillus sp., were the dominant strains. Invertebrate populations indicated an effect of the WTP discharge, with increasing of pollution resistant strains (Tubificidae) and disappearance of pollution intolerant strains such as Limnodrilus udekemianus and Quistadrilus multicoetosus. Taken as a whole, biological parameters indicated an environmental changes despite only slight changes in the physicochemistry of water. This experimental microcosm has proven to be a useful tool for studying impact of wastewater discharge on benthic populations.     

崇明岛不同年龄水杉人工林生态系统碳储量的特点及估测

水杉(Metasequoia glyptostroboides)是我国亚热带地区人工用材和城镇绿化的重要树种之一,由于生长速度快,种植广泛,水杉人工林在碳汇林经营中,也具有重要意义.本试验在上海崇明岛东平国家森林公园设置样地,调查分析了不同年龄阶段水杉人工林生态系统土壤碳密度和碳储量,测定了林地枯落物层和林下植被层碳储量,并用生物量方程法估测了树木生物量及各组分的碳储量.结果表明,水杉人工林生态系统碳储量随着生长年限的增加而增加,在8、15和30年生水杉人工林生态系统内,总碳储量分别为87.02,117.69和160.26 t·hm-2;在8、15和30年生3个林分中,乔木层碳储量所占比重分别为5.3%,22.8%和41.0%,土壤层碳储量所占比重为88.8%、75.6%和57.1%.在8年生林分内,林下植被层碳储量(1.94 t·hm-2)和枯落物层碳储量(3.19 t·hm-2)占林分总碳储量比例最大,15年生和30年生水杉人工林林下植被碳储量近似相同(约为0.7 t.hm-2),分别占总储量的0.6%和0.5%.在不同年龄的水杉人工林林分中,同一土壤深度层次,土壤碳含量高低顺序是30年>15年>8年,表明有机碳含量随林龄的增长而增加.在不同年龄水杉人工林林分中,土壤碳含量均随土壤深度的增加而呈下降趋势,0～20cm、20～40 cm和40～60 cm相邻层次之间碳含量差异均达到显著水平(P<0.05).     

Marine-Derived Penicillium purpurogenum Reduces Tumor Size and Ameliorates Inflammation in an Erlich Mice Model

Background: This study addresses the antitumoral properties of Penicillium purpurogenum isolated from a polluted lagoon in Northeastern Brazil. Methods: Ethyl Acetate Extracellular Extract (EAE) was used. The metabolites were studied using direct infusion mass spectrometry. The solid Ehrlich tumor model was used for antitumor activity. Female Swiss mice were divided into groups (n = 10/group) as follows: The negative control (CTL−), treated with a phosphate buffered solution; the positive control (CTL+), treated with cyclophosphamide (25 mg/kg); extract treatments at doses of 4, 20, and 100 mg/kg; animals without tumors or treatments (Sham); and animals without tumors treated with an intermediate dose (EAE20). All treatments were performed intraperitoneally, daily, for 15 days. Subsequently, the animals were euthanized, and the tumor, lymphoid organs, and serum were used for immunological, histological, and biochemical parameter evaluations. Results: The extract was rich in meroterpenoids. All doses significantly reduced tumor size, and the 20 and 100 mg/kg doses reduced tumor-associated inflammation and tumor necrosis. The extract also reduced the cellular infiltration of lymphoid organs and circulating TNF-α levels. The extract did not induce weight loss or renal and hepatic toxic changes. Conclusions: These results indicate that P. purpurogenum exhibits immunomodulatory and antitumor properties in vivo. Thus, fungal fermentation is a valid biotechnological approach to the production of antitumor agents.